Wimbledon semifinal between Carlos Alcaraz and Taylor Fritz stopped twice due to unwell spectators
American men's No 1 Fritz, then a set down, took a 0-15 lead at 4-3 in the second set when play was briefly halted, with the umpire calling a brief stoppage and stewards tending to an unwell spectator with umbrellas. A bottle of water was also delivered into the crowd.
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The stoppage was brief, but three points later at 30-30, the players were forced to stop again as another incident saw a spectator receive medical attention. Both instances took place to Fritz's left, with supporters sitting in a stand unshaded against the sun. The umpire joined several officials, including tournament referee Denise Parnell, courtside to discuss the incidents, before returning to commence play.
Fritz went on to force an immediate break point, but Alcaraz saved it, and sealed the hold to continue a tightly-contested second set which Fritz eventually won 7-5.
Temperatures at the All England Club ranged from 28 to 30 degrees Celsius during the semifinal, with this year's tournament taking place amid two British heatwaves.
There have been several incidents of play being stopped at this year's Wimbledon championships due to spectators being taken ill in the stands.
During both women's semifinals on Thursday, play was halted in the first set — twice during Aryna Sabalenka's match against Amanda Anisimova — as stewards tended to the affected spectators with umbrellas, while Sabalenka passed a bottle of water and an ice pack into the crowd.
Alcaraz, meanwhile, similarly offered a water bottle to a spectator during his first-round match against Fabio Fognini, while Fritz saw his third-round match against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina paused several times due to similar issues within the stands.
Wimbledon recorded its hottest-ever opening day in the history of the championships with the early days of the competition seeing temperatures of up to 32 degrees Celsius, just shy of 90 degrees Fahrenheit.
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